Press Release

Overregulation Increasingly Harming Small Businesses

(Washington, D.C.) - With the economy continuing to grow slowly and new business startups falling to a 30-year low, increasing attention is being focused on the role of excessive regulation in stalling job creation. According to a recent national survey, small businesspeople often find that state websites are confusing and the bureaucrats working at those respective departments are unhelpful. Entrepreneurs can waste hours or days trying to comply with rules that are poorly written, and are often forced to pay for licenses for low-wage positions that may require little training. Often they are given bad information about rules and processes, leading them to waste valuable time attempting to fulfill requirements that do not apply to them. Reducing and simplifying regulations can help create jobs, expand options, and lower costs for consumers.

The survey - conducted by Thumbtack.com in partnership with the Kauffman Foundation - found that the more than 12,000 respondents rated Utah, Idaho, Texas, Virginia and Louisiana as the friendliest states to small businesses. Texas, Oklahoma, Utah, and Idaho are the only states that receive an A+ rating for ease of starting a business. When it came to overall regulatory impact, these small business owners gave California, Rhode Island and Illinois an "F," while Connecticut and New Jersey both earned a "D" rating. Until policymakers begin to focus on limiting the regulations and taxes that make it hard for entrepreneurs to succeed, business creation and hiring will continue to lag.

Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative, released the following statement:

"The startups and the small businesses that are founded today are the success stories of the future. Our nation's largest employers all began as small companies, and as they have grown they've enabled millions of hard-working Americans to build a better future and achieve the American Dream. But if policymakers allow excess regulation and high taxes to stifle entrepreneurship, America will not grow the jobs and technologies of the future. Today's shortsighted policies are hurting our children's future.

The American people are calling for policies to promote growth. Our leaders can start by reining in the regulations that make it so hard for new companies to be founded and succeed. This is especially important for Latinos, who start businesses at a much higher rate than other Americans. They have little to show for their investment in this administration, and they are falling further behind."